The craziness of a late Michigan winter, early spring is upon us. Somedays its 70° and sunny, other days it’s 20° and snowing. You might be finding it hard to get in a rhythm of good runs. If you’re struggling with this, you’re not alone, even the best athletes on the planet question themselves at certain points in their training. Like every athlete, when faced with this question between you and yourself – you have to answer. How you answer determines more than your race performance, it determines the pride you can take in your accomplishment.
The reality is, if getting ready for a race was easy, you wouldn’t need a training group, you wouldn’t need a plan, and you wouldn’t need me or my weekly tips. The reality is it’s not easy, we all have a little self-doubt when things get tough, that’s natural. The character built in responding to that self-doubt is something far more valuable than crossing the finishing line in a race.
So how do you push past the self-doubt and loss of motivation that creeps in at this point in race prep? Follow these four tips below for building the mental fitness you need to finish your prep strong:
- Embrace your self-doubt: you shouldn’t be afraid of your self-doubt or loss of motivation, as I said above they’re normal. If you look at them as just another hurdle to overcome, another challenge that makes this process rewarding, your mindset shifts. Instead of this becoming a bad thing, it becomes just one more thing to be proud of overcoming when you cross that finish line.
- Go back to your WHY: the first blog I wrote for you was on Finding your WHY. That should be what drives you. It should be what you always draw on when things get difficult. A well-formed WHY can push you through even the most grueling parts of this process. Draw on that WHY each time things get hard and you will find all the motivation you need.
- View this as Bigger than a Race: the mental fitness developed from achieving a physical fitness goal can translate into so many aspects of your life. Difficult situations at work or at home. Hard, mentally challenging situations are around us all the time, however rarely are they as tangible and as straightforward to overcome as completing an 8 mile run. Overcoming your fears and self-doubt in getting ready for this race can provide easy translation into other areas of your life.
- Realize you’re not alone: You’ve got a great support structure of fellow runners, coaches, friends, and family who are rooting for you to succeed in crossing the finish line. Talk to someone you trust if you’re struggling to find your motivation and overcome a little self-doubt. Even a short conversation can make all the difference in the world.
We’re almost there, and you are so close to achieving your goal of successfully completing this race. Find the courage in yourself to push through these last weeks of training. I believe in you, now it’s time for you to believe in you!